Everything I Want
by What a Rubber Chicken
Summary: (Enemy and Lifeswap AU) Marinette Agreste has become Ladybug, and has teamed up with her father Hawkmoth in an effort to bring back her dead mother. The only one to stop them is Chat Noir, whose secret identity is Adrien Dupain-Cheng, a simple baker's son. But while Ladybug and Hawkmoth are relentless, Adrien will do anything it takes to protect his family and friends.
1. Chapter 1

(Originally written for AU August. I still don't own Miraculous.)

* * *

 **Everything I Want - Part 1  
**

Ladybug watched with fascination as Pharaoh worked his spell to bring back his long-lost love. He had his required mummies, his scepter and scroll. They were chanting and forming symbols as Pharaoh worked his magic. _If this worked…_

She frowned as the mummies lifted up a girl her age, carrying her to the center of the formation. She'd seen that girl in the museum earlier, working on a report on the Tutankhamen exhibit for her blog.

She lifted her hand to her ear. "We've got a problem, Papa," she said, speaking into the communication device. "It looks like his spell requires a sacrifice."

"A sacrifice that will turn the girl into a goddess," Hawkmoth argued in her ear. "I can think of many worse fates."

"But, Papa—"

"Just keep an eye out for that pesky cat."

Ladybug sighed and pouted. _He never listened to her! And he'd promised! If they couldn't get the Cat Ring to combine with her Ladybug Earrings and make their wish, they'd try other methods! There had to be some way to get Mama back without sacrificing anybody else!_

Something caught her eye down below. A flash of black. Ladybug quickly focused on it. _Sure enough…._

* * *

Chat Noir used his baton to take out the mummies carrying Alya, catching his friend in a princess hold and quickly leaping to a nearby rooftop. He could hear Pharaoh below, bellowing at his mummies.

"Get somewhere safe!" he said to Alya, turning to face the enemy swinging towards him.

"Well, well, Chat Noir," Ladybug said, landing on the roof and lazily swinging her yoyo. "Here he comes to wreck the day."

"Happy to foil your dastardly plans to hurt innocent civilians, m'lady," he winked right back at her. To his dismay, he heard Alya get out her phone, obviously excited about getting the next big scoop on the battles between Chat Noir and Ladybug. He rolled his eyes at his friend. _She was seriously gonna get killed one day._

"Give me your ring and no one else has to get hurt," Ladybug said, shifting into a ready stance.

"Now, _why_ do I not believe the evil supervillain?" Chat pretended to ponder. "Oops, I'm sorry; I meant evil sidekick." He smirked as she glared at him. "So, my spotted menace, where is Super Dad the Big Bad?"

"None of your business, alley cat!" she snarled. "You've got more important things to worry about!"

"Like wha—"

Chat was cut off as Pharaoh tackled him from the side. He struggled in the big guy's grip, feeling his stomach plummet as the ground got further and further away.

 _Great, just great. King I-Want-My-Mummy can fly._

Just then, he spotted an amulet fluttering in the wind around Pharaoh's neck.

"Hey, this looks important!" he grinned, grabbing it. " _Cataclysm_!"

The amulet turned to dust in his hand.

"NOOOO!" Pharaoh cried, falling towards the ground as his powers started to fade.

Now that the akuma didn't have his freaky strength, Chat managed to struggle free, grabbing his baton from his back and extending it. He grabbed Pharaoh by the collar as the baton slowed their fall, both of them landing softly on the ground. Pharaoh stayed crouched on the ground, the dark power still overwhelming him. Chat smirked as Ladybug swung down to them.

"Make your choice, Bugaboo," he teased, pointing up at the released akuma. "Go after me or the pretty little butterfly. But the longer you wait, the more likely the victim will be able to identify Daddy-dearest's voice when the police question him later. Unless, ya know, _you purify everything_ before he wakes up from the evil spell…."

She glared at him. He could almost hear her grumbling as she called on her Lucky Charm. As always, it turned into a butterfly net. She scowled at it and tossed it aside, using her yoyo to catch the akuma.

As she purified it and called on her Cure to fix everything, Chat used his time wisely and hightailed it outta there. Ladybug wouldn't attack the victim, or any innocents in the area (thank God), but she was sometimes willing to try to hunt him down until both their timers got dangerously low.

 _It was too bad too,_ he mused, as he made it to his balcony above his parents' bakery. _She was really cute, and would've made a great ally._

His transformation fell away as he dropped into his room above the bakery. Plagg immediately swept up, demanding cheese. The fact that Adrien couldn't afford expensive cheeses really grated on the kwami. ( _Haha, he'd made another good joke! He'd have to work that one into a conversation somehow._ ) He was also irritable whenever they ran into Ladybug.

According to Plagg, they were supposed to be partners, not enemies.

 _And if wishes were butterflies, the whole world would be akumatized_ , Adrien thought, rolling his eyes as he made his way down to the kitchen to get food for his kwami.

"Mom? Dad? Do you know if we have any cream cheese scones left?" he called, peeking in the fridge.

"Yeeesssss… I love you, kid," Plagg hissed from his shirt. Adrien grinned, even as his mother ruffled his hair from behind.

"Still on a growing spurt, Adrien? You'll be taller than your father soon!" Sabine gushed.

"I don't think that's possible!" Adrien laughed, finally finding the snacks he was looking for.

"Now, remember, supper will be soon!" his mother reminded him as he hurried up the stairs again.

"I'll eat seconds!" he promised.

"And don't forget your homework!"

"Got it, Mom!"

* * *

Ladybug dropped her transformation as soon as she made it in the window and paused for a moment to glare at her kwami.

"Would it kill you to give me a Lucky Charm I can actually _use_ for once?!" she ranted.

Tikki turned unamused eyes to her wielder. " _You_ may serve the Moth Miraculous, but _I_ do not," she said primly.

"No, you're supposed to serve _me_ ," Marinette argued. "And when I call on my power, I expect it to be something I can use for my mission!"

"You _can_ use it," Tikki replied, smirking at her. "Butterfly nets are perfect for catching akumas."

"I don't _need_ to catch akumas!" Marinette yelled. "I need to catch Chat Noir!"

"The Ladybug Miraculous was activated to combat Hawkmoth. Whether you like it or not, _that_ is your mission."

"The mission has changed, Tikki," Marinette growled.

"And if you actually believed that, you'd be able to call on a different Lucky Charm."

Tikki flew up to the second story of Marinette's massive bedroom, indicating that the conversation was over. Marinette pouted a bit and stomped her foot, finally leaving the room to go face her father after her latest failure.

 _She didn't really see him as the enemy, did she?_ she wondered as she made her way down the hall. _True, Papa wasn't the most-affectionate father, but he'd always made sure they never wanted for anything. He taught her everything he could about his fashion empire, nurturing her budding interest in design. And while she didn't like the idea of hurting innocents to get their wish, he was doing all this to bring back Mama._

 _No, Tikki was wrong._

 _She and Father were a team, and together they'd make their family whole again._

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

**Everything I Want - Part 2**

"Okay, I can do this," Marinette said, slapping her cheeks to get herself worked up. Then, before she could chicken out again, she rapped on the door to her father's office.

"Come in," she heard him say, and quickly stepped inside, closing the door behind her.

"Papa," she said primly, "I would like to talk to you."

Gabriel Agreste barely spared her a glance. "I'm very busy, Marinette. I'm due for a meeting here—"

"—with me," Marinette interrupted, pausing a bit at her own daring. She regained her composure and stood tall again. "I had Nathalie schedule a whole hour for us to talk, so if we make this quick, you should be able to actually get ahead in your designs afterwards."

Her father regarded her silently for a moment, then flipped to his schedule to confirm her words. She heard him hum as he found her name under the appointed time.

"Very well, Marinette," he said, lacing his fingers together. "You have my attention."

She let out a breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding.

"I want to talk to you about the issue of my going to school—"

"Absolutely not."

"But, Papa—"

"Out of the question," he growled. "I will not have you outside in that dangerous world!"

Marinette firmly told herself not to scream. Not to cry, or pout, or stomp her foot. Those were things _Chloe Bourgeois_ did to get her way. She was _not_ Chloe Bourgeois. She was a _lady_. _The_ Lady. _Ladybug_.

"I am Ladybug, Papa," she reminded him, gritting her teeth to keep her words calm and even. "I am 'out there' every time you release an akuma."

"Oh, are you going to go to school in your suit, then?" Gabriel sneered at her.

"I won't need to," she replied swiftly. "But I'll have Tikki with me all the time, just in case. Please listen to my reasoning. I know the signs of an imminent attack; I know what to look for in your victims. I can help you find more people—"

"I am more than capable of doing that on my own," her father interrupted, holding up his hand. It was clear he thought the matter was over.

"And I might be able to find Chat Noir easier!" Marinette burst out, before he could dismiss her completely. That made Gabriel hesitate, just like everything else that had to do with Mama. The Cat Ring was the one thing they were missing in order to bring her back. Marinette took another deep, calming breath. "Look, you and I have both tried to sketch him to figure out who he is, but the Miraculous magic gets in the way. We know he's my age, and somewhere in the area. School's the best place to look for him, you said so yourself—that's why you keep akumatizing people from that school!"

To her delight, Gabriel appeared to be considering her words.

"I'll be able to be on the scene that much quicker," she said. "And I'll have more of a chance to catch him that way. I can—" _make friends_ , she almost said, but she swallowed it. She didn't want Papa thinking she was going to get too distracted from her mission. "I've been having some difficulties in creating my own casual line," she said instead. "And it would really help me if I could see what people my age are wearing these days. Normal people. You've been talking about making the company more marketable…."

Her father shot her an amused glance. "You're still too young to take over my company, little bug."

She grinned at him cheekily. "More information is always better, Papa. We have the advantage here. We need to press it."

He nodded thoughtfully. "If we're going to do this," he said sternly, "we are going to do it _my_ way…."

Marinette mentally cheered.

* * *

"I'm off to school, Mom—what's that?" Adrien skidded to a stop on his way out the kitchen door. Sabine quickly hid the piece of paper behind her back.

"It's nothing, dear," she said, giving him a smile. "Have a good day at school."

Adrien frowned, but gave his mother a quick kiss on the cheek and waved goodbye as he headed out. They thought they could hide it, but he knew better. Dad was an amazing baker, and Mom's chocolate was to die for, but their PR skills were crap. Hardly anybody knew about the gem that was the little bakery on the corner.

Dad couldn't even come up with a marketable logo.

So, they were struggling. Not much, just a bill here and there. Still, Adrien was old enough to notice. And he was also old enough to want to do something about it.

"I think it's about time to put my plan into motion, Plagg," he muttered as he made his way downstairs.

"You want to get a job?" his kwami asked incredulously. "You're barely a teenager! Learn to relax and live a little! Who would even hire you? You don't have any skills!"

"Yeah, as you keep reminding me, the only thing I have going for me is my pretty face," Adrien snarked back. He waved to his dad as he left the building. "So, I'll use that."

"Please tell me you're not gonna let that blonde harpy hang over you even more than she already is," Plagg moaned.

"Chloe's rich, and well-connected," Adrien argued. "She already thinks I should be a model."

"Yeah, 'cause she wants you as arm candy."

"A good word from her will almost definitely land me a modeling gig somewhere," Adrien continued, pretending he couldn't hear the tiny cat. "Besides, it doesn't hurt to be a little nice to her. She's got barely any friends."

"Probably because she's _rude_ ," Plagg drawled, rolling his eyes. "Baker Boy."

Adrien grinned at his kwami. "It's only an insult if I feel insulted, Plagg. I'm proud of my father. So, I happen to like being called a—"

"Baker Boy!" Chloe's voice sang through their conversation and Plagg quick hid, trying to find a place where he wouldn't be glomped with the rest of Adrien.

No luck. The kwami was swept up in the tight squeeze, more grateful than ever for the ability to phase through things.

"Oh, Adrikins, the most horrible thing happened!" Chloe sighed dramatically, draping herself over the blond again. " _She's_ somehow convinced her father to let her come to _my_ school! It's awful! She'll ruin everything!"

"Who are you talking about, Chloe?" Adrien asked, disentangling himself and gently keeping her a good arm's length away so Plagg could breathe. "Who's _she_?"

Just then, a large car drove up to the school. Chloe gave a shriek of outrage and hid behind Adrien. " _Her_ ," she hissed angrily. "Marinette Agreste!"

Adrien blinked. Agreste? The daughter of the famous fashion designer? Rumors said she'd done a few pieces for her father's company, and even designed a CD cover for Jagged Stone! Ever since he'd considered modeling, he'd wanted to model for them!

And… the girl that stepped out of the car… her hair done up in pigtails, with a pleasant smile on her face… Adrien felt himself blush.

 _Oh damn, she was cute._

She glanced over at him and, to his dismay, her eyes hardened.

 _What had_ ** _he_** _done? He couldn't have done anything to her yet! He'd just_ ** _seen_** _her for the first time!_

Adrien felt his stomach drop further as she headed towards him.

"Chloe Bourgeois, how _nice_ to see you," she said, and he realized she wasn't staring at him, but the blonde gripping his shoulders like he was her personal shield. Chloe realized she'd been called out and, of course, responded in kind.

"Marinette Agreste," she sneered, stepping up to Adrien's side and looping her arm into his. "So your daddy finally let you out of your cage?"

"Mmm," Marinette agreed, and Adrien felt the temperature drop in his immediate area. "So nice of you, to send him police reports of all the crime in the area for the past three years."

"Glad to help," Chloe simpered.

"It's too bad they were doctored," Marinette said, her voice hardening. "Or that my father's assistant isn't as stupid as whatever flunky you hired to fudge them."

"How dare you!" Chloe shrieked. "When my father hears of this—!"

"He'll investigate immediately?" Marinette suggested, her voice sugary sweet again. "Wouldn't want to lose my father's vote after all, since he's one of the mayor's most prestigious supporters."

Chloe actually growled, and clutched Adrien tighter.

Marinette glanced at Adrien dismissively. "Your arm candy, I assume?"

Inside Adrien's shirt, Plagg started cackling. Adrien considered smacking the kwami to shut him up, but he was too mad to focus on that right now. _How dare she? She'd hadn't even met him properly, and she'd just assumed…._

"I am not!" he exclaimed, pulling away from Chloe so he could face her better. "My name is Adrien Dupain-Cheng, and I want to be a model!"

 _Crap, why had he said that?_

"But just because I look good doesn't mean I'm stupid," he continued, trying to save face. "And you're being very rude to assume something before we've even met!"

Marinette took a step back, blinking. Her mouth opened, but Adrien didn't want to hear it.

"Now, normally I'm not this rude either, so if you'll please excuse me, ladies, we're going to be late for class!"

With that, Adrien stormed off into the school, not even caring if either of them were following.

* * *

 _She'd been in his class,_ Adrien reflected miserably as he waited for the sudden downpour to stop. _Almost all of his classes. He'd had to see her practically all day and remember how he'd tripped over his words, and shouted at her, and how Chloe had practically clutched him all day long…._

 _Ugh._

 _He was mad at her. But he was also mad at himself._

 _He hadn't needed to react that way. So what if she saw him as nothing other than Chloe's accessory? Maybe she still would've considered letting him work for her. Now he'd ruined all his chances._

 _Talk about bad luck._

"Um, excuse me," came a small voice behind him. He yelped, jumped and spun around, his eyes going round when he saw who'd addressed him.

 _It was her! Marinette Agreste!_

But instead of the haughty fashionista he'd seen this morning, she looked almost… shy. And she blushed when she realized she had his attention.

"I wanted to apologize, for earlier today," Marinette said softly. "You were right, I had no right to assume—and no right to talk to you like that. I'm sorry."

Adrien blinked, only part of his brain realizing that he'd backed out into the rain, and water was now dripping into his eyes.

"I'm sorry too," he said, looking away. "I didn't have to yell at you either. It was uncalled for, and totally unlike me."

"Truce?"

He looked back at her to see her holding out her hand. He smiled as he grasped it firmly with his own.

"Truce."

Water from his hand squirted up at her with the handshake, and he grimaced. But, before he could pull away and apologize again, Marinette flicked open an umbrella with her other hand and held it above them both.

Above them, thunder rolled.

...

TBC...?


End file.
